Earlier this year, Kydala Publishing, Inc. released an anthology I compiled called And Then There Were Nine. I had a marvelous time choosing stories and authors and putting the book together. I was particularly intrigued by the title and premise of Kari Kilgore’s story, “The Sound of Murder.”

Can sound be used as a murder weapon? I had to read Kari’s story to find out. Computer hacking, digital intrigue, and seductive, hypnotic, aural programming come together to make it a fascinating read. I got the chance to interview Kari recently and I’ll share some of that with you today, along with a nibble from the story.

An excerpt from The Sound of Murder

“If you know about me,” Dana said, “you know why I can’t get back into hacking, Mr. Redmond. That part of my life is over.”

“I’m not asking you to get into their bank accounts. Just find the common thread. Take a look, a careful look, and see what you come up with. Don’t worry about your usual projects for now. There’s a full year’s salary bonus for whoever works this out.”

“A full…” Dana shook her head, quite certain she’d misunderstood. “You’re offering me a year’s pay? How could it be worth that?”

She didn’t have to do the math. That much money would pay off her college debts and everything else she’d racked up putting her past firmly behind her. The prospect of returning to her hacker life, even temporarily, felt slightly less dreadful now.

“These were all in our lowest risk pool,” he said, raising his eyebrows. “Several of them had policies worth ten times your salary. Trust me. It’s worth it.

Interviewing Kari Kilgore

I’ve had the good fortune to meet Kari and her author husband, Jason A. Adams, on a couple of occasions. They are great fun to be around and full of creative energy. I was thrilled to learn that Kari started her first published novel Until Death in Transylvania, Romania, and finished it in Room 217 at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, where a rather famous creepy tale about a hotel sparked into life.

Last summer I visited the Stanley, and Kari occupied my thoughts almost as much as Stephen King. What a cool way to wrap up writing your first novel! Here’s part of our interview together:

How do you come up with names for your characters, and do they hold significance?

Most of the time the names are sort of random, or fairly common names. Sometimes I pick them as placeholders meaning to change them, but I get used to the name and keep it. If I’m writing fantasy or science fiction, I often search for words in a different language with a specific meaning.

In The Sound of Murder, however, the character Andre Telkin came from a dear friend of mine who’s hearing impaired. She’s inspired me countless times over the years in all kinds of ways. With Andre’s enhanced abilities becoming his superpowers, the name made perfect sense.

Where did you get the idea for the story in this collection? How did you develop it?

The story prompt was to simply write a mystery. I went back to the memory of a specific rotten job I had way back in the 90s, blended that with my IT experience over the years, and started writing to see what would happen.

The fun part of this story is the characters and setting have continued to develop into several more stories with Dana and Andre in different genres. They’re at the center of their own little fictional universe that grows all the time. I never expected that, and I’m often surprised when they show up in a story, but I love seeing them every time!

What are you working on next?

I have several sequels on the horizon this year, including in a woman sleuth mystery series where Dana makes an appearance. That one started with DNA Never Lies, and the series is called Bending the Code. Dana’s hacking skills play a vital part, of course, but her ability to be a good friend is even more important. I’m looking forward to seeing how that develops in the next story.

More about Kari

Kari Kilgore lives and works in her native mountains of Virginia. From that solid home base, she and her husband Jason Adams http://jasonadams.info/ find adventures all over the world to bring to life in fiction. Exploring local legends and mythologies in particular delights and inspires them.

Kari writes science fiction, fantasy, and horror, and she’s happiest when she surprises herself. She lives at the end of a long dirt road in the middle of the woods with Jason, various house critters, and wildlife they’re better off not knowing more about.

To get in touch with Kari, drop a note to kari (at) spiralpublishing.net. Check out other books and authors at www.spiralpublishing.net  too!

How about you? Are you curious to find out how Kari’s audio murder weapon worked? Share your thoughts in the comments and be sure to join the growing group of readers who’ve discovered the thrill of Chase and get the multi-author anthology, And Then There Were Nine, for free!